Malaysia Poetry

Nature Poems & Narrative Poetry

Author: Chrystelia Mongijal, Malaysia

Poem MEMORIES OF CHILDHOOD

I can still smell the fresh flowers,
And feel their silky petals against my face,
And the pain of thorns pricking my little fingers,
As I scampered through brambled bushes,
As happy as a five year old could be,
Not a care in the world!

I remembered sitting on that wooden platform,
My brother set across two sturdy branches,
Of the heavy laden "burungan" tree across the kitchen,
Climbing up to it,I recalled my battle with the red ants,
O,it must have hurt, and I'm sure there were tears of pain,
But what joy it was when at last I gained the sweet fruits!

That river near our house still stored my fondest memories of childhood,
When, as a toddler I jumped in, as my mother was busy with the day's washing,
Two years after, to almost drown while rafting,
As I learned to fend for myself, it became my playground,
Even with its muddy waters in the drought seasons,
But how awesome its powers were at the height of the rainy seasons!

O how I love my father's house with its many wonders,
What great adventures I had, roaming through the rooms,
Like that exquisite wedding chair in the attic,
Or the gongs, "sundatang" and "tontog",
And other priceless relics, symbols of our rich culture and heritage,
But how fast I ran when "tokki", the big lizard boomed through the house!

I remembered the only time my father beat me and lost his temper with me,
When unknowingly, finding a five dollar bill, I started tearing it into little pieces,
And putting them into an empty can, proceeded to play happily,
When all the while my father was searching for the bill, a big amount for our family,
How I cried then, perhaps my first tears of guilt and shame in my life,
To comfort me, father bought cookies with the patched bill, which only increased my remorse.

I remembered that three miles journey father and I used to make every two weeks,
I'd be sitting on his shoulders, holding onto his "sigaled" head,
How strong he was, and still is, as he carried me up and down hills, along that lonely stretch,
As I talked his ears off as only a 5 year old could,
It must had been a long and lonely journey back home for father after that,
All for love of me, so I get to play with other kids at aunty's place.

I remembered clearly times spent with my friends in "Nukiran",
We jumped ropes, climbed trees, played ghosts in the river,
Hide and seek, played marbles, played dolls and "cooking",
So unlike father's place, where I was the only kid for a mile,
My only playmates, chickens and the family dogs,
I've never felt lonely, but perhaps it shaped my personality.

I believe it was love of nature that stamped my childhood,
I witnessed firsthand the strength and force of mother nature,
I felt its gentle, soothing, and life-giving presence,
It grieves me to see her so harshly treated now,
How shall we answer our children when the trees and flowers are gone?
How are we going to look them in the eye and say, "better days are coming"?
Knowing that our planet is slowly dying.